Stripping and feeding device for strip material

ABSTRACT

A cineprojector or similar device is provided with restraining means for controlling the entry of stripping means into a cartridge in use so as to ensure a strip material such as film to be smoothly stripped and threaded from a roll of such material irrespective of the variable size of the cartridge. Means for driving stripping means and threading means in association with each other is provided to simplify the operation of the device.

United States Patent [191 Yamanaka et al.

[ Aug. 7, 1973 1 1 STRlPPlNG AND FEEDING DEVICE FOR STRlP MATERlAL [75]Inventors: Torakiyo Yamanaka, Yokohama;

Yoshihiro Shigeta; Kuniyoshi Suzaki, both of Tokyo, all of Japan [73]Assigneez Canon Kabushiki Kaisha, Tokyo,

Japan [22] Filed: Oct. 4, 1971 [21] Appl. No.: 186,010

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data Oct. 5, 1970 [52] US. Cl.242/192, 352/157 [51] Int. Cl G03b l/04, G03b 1/56, G1 lb 15/32 [58]Field 01' Search 242/186, 192, 197-200;

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,670,989 6/1972 Andrews242/192 Japan 45/87360' 3,429,518 2/1969 McKee 242/186 3,544,206 12/1970Freudenschusz 352/72 3,628,749 12/1971 Ort et a1. 242/186 3,603,5299/1971 Bundschuh 242/197 Primary ExaminerLeonard D. Christian Attorney-Joseph M. Fitzpatrick, John Thomas Cella et a1.

[57] ABSTRACT A cineprojector or similar device is provided withrestraining means for controlling the entry of stripping means into acartridge in use so as to ensure a strip material such as film to besmoothly stripped and threaded from a roll of such material irrespectiveof the variable size of the cartridge. Means for driving stripping meansand threading means in association with each other is provided tosimplify the operation of the device.

12 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures PAIENIED m9 7 SHEEI 3 0F 3 FIG. 4

FIG. 5

STRIPPING AND FEEDING DEVICE FOR STRIP MATERIAL BACKGROUND OF THEINVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This invention relates to astripping and feeding device for strip material such as the film usedwith a cineprojector or the like.

2. Description of the Prior Art Machines such as cineprojector,microfilm reader and tape recorder which are adapted .to use a cartridgecontaining therein a film, tape or other strip material have-beenfinding wider and wider uses. The recent development of cartridgeshaving different volumes or different sizes has given rise to therequirement that such various types of cartridge must be able to bemounted for use in the same cineprojector or the like. To meet thisrequirement, a stripper for stripping a leader film or tape off a rollof film or tape must be made such that the entry of the stripper intothe opening of the cartridge is controlled so as to ensure the stripperto take a stripping position with respect to the roll of film or tapeirrespective of the size of the cartridge.

An approach to this problem has been proposed by U. S. Pat. No.3,429,518 which discloses a springsupported, pivotable stripper and, incase of smalldiametered rolls, an outer curved surface having a radius Requal to the distance from the pivot to the outer curved surface of thestripper so as to bring the pawllike end portion of the stripper intothe stripping position for the roll. However, this method has beendisadvantageous in that it requires a stripper of different shape to beused for a different size of cartridge or a different diameter of theroll in the cartridge, thus failing to provide a simple means.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the. present invention toprovide a stripping and feeding device for strip material which haseliminated the foregoing disadvantages and permits the use of the samestripper irrespective of the variable size of the cartridge in use.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a stripping andfeeding device for strip material which has a stripper pivotally movablewith respect to the body of the device and provided with a cammingsurface so that as it enters a cartridge opening the camming surface ofthe stripper is restrained by a stripper restraing member provided onthe body of the device to thereby control the angle at which thestripper enters the cartridge.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide astripping and feeding device for strip material which has anintermediate slider for pivotally support ing a stripper resilientlymounted for pressure contact with a roll of strip material and a startslider, both sliders being actuated in association with each other topermit the stripper to retract from the cartridge openmg.

It is yet another. object of the present invention to provide astripping and feeding device for strip material in which means forimparting to a roll of strip material a rotational movement in itsrewinding direction is op eratively associated with the start slider toremove any slack in the roll before it is stripped.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a strippingand feeding ,device for strip material in which the start slider movablewith respect to the body of the device is operatively associated withthreading means adapted for pressure contact with a roll of stripmaterial to thread the strip material from the roll and the intermediateslider movable with respect to the body of the device is operativelyassociated with the stripper adapted for contact with the roll ofstripmaterial to strip the strip material 011' the roll, therebydefining a threading passage for the strip material from the rollbetween the adjacent sides of the threading means and the.stripper,'andfurther the intermediate and start sliders may be returned to theirinitial positions to thereby release the stripping operation for theroll of strip material.

Other objects and features of the present invention will become fullyapparent from the following detailed description of embodiments thereoftaken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERREDEMBODIMENTS Various components of the device according to the presentinvention are shown in FIGS. 1 to 4. A cartridge, desgnated bynumeral 1,contains therein aroll of strip material 2 such as film! In FIGS. 1 and2, the cartridge 1 is shown as a compact type but a largersizedcartridge may be inserted in the device as indicated by circularimaginary lines. A stripper 3 is pivotally supported by an intermediateslider to be described, and has a pointed end portion 3, adapted toresiliently contact the outermost periphery of the roll of stripmaterial in a stripping direction to thereby strip the strip materialoff the roll, and a strip passage surface 3, along which the leader endportion of the stripped material may be guided. Threading means for thestrip material, generally designated by numeral 4, is provided adjacentto the roll of strip material land tothe stripper 3. The threading means4 includes a driving roller 5 rotatably joumalled to the body of thedevice, two driven rollers 6, and 6,, an endless belt 7 extending overthe three rollers, and a base plate 9 carrying thereon the three rollers5, 6, and 6, and pivotally movable about a driving roller shaft 8. 0nthe driving roller shaft 8 there is integrally mounted a driving lever10 for pivotally moving the entire threading means 4 to urge the sameinto contact with the outermost periphery of the strip roll. The belt 7may be of circular or rectangular cross section having a diameter orwidth smaller than the width of the strip material, and may be formed ofrubber or any other conventional material. The driven roller 6, maypreferably have a smaller diameter than the initial diameter of thestrip roll so as to facilitate the rotation of the latter.

An intermediate slider 11 is slidably mounted with respect to the bodyof the device, and is operatively associated with the stripper 3 in themanner as will later be described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4. Astart slider 12 is also slidably mounted with respect to the body of thedevice. These two sliders l1 and 12 are slidable from their initialpositions 11' and 12 (imaginary lines in FIG. 3) along a pair of sliderguide rails R1 and R2 fixed to the body of the device (FIGS. 1 and 3).Two coil springs F1 and F2 are provided to return the start andintermediate sliders 12 and 11 to their initial positions respectively,as shown in FIG. I. More specifically, one end of the coil spring F1 isconnected to the start slider 12 and one end of the coil spring F2 isconnected to the intermediate slider 11, while the other ends of thesecoil springs are connected to the body of the device.

The start slider 12 has a studded pin 13 (FIG. 1), which is engaged witha recessed end 15 of an L-shaped change-over lever 14 pivotally mountedon a shaft 17 studded in a retaining member 16 fixed to the intermediateslider 11. The other recessed end 18 of the change-over lever 14 is alsoengaged with a pin 21 fixed to one end of a connecting lever which ispivotally mounted on a shaft 19 studded in retaining member 16. Theother end of the connecting lever 20 is engageable with one end of thedriving lever 10 of the aforesaid I threading means.

The operative association between the stripper 3 and the intermediateslider 11 will now be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 4. Thestripper 3 is supported by a stripper support shaft 22 on a strippersupport plate 23, which is integral with a pivotable arm 26 pivotallymounted on a shaft 25 fixed to the intermediate slider 11 by means of amoving mechanism including a spring 24. Thus, the pivotable arm 26 ispivotally movable with the stripper 3 about the support shaft 22 and, asshown in FIG. 1, one end of the arm 26 is engaged with the shaft 25while carrying one end of the coil spring 24, thereby normally impartinga counterclockwise rotational force to the stripper 3.

Actually, the roll of strip material contained in the cartridge oftentendsto be slack before the strip material is unwound, and such slackmust be removed initially. Means for removing such slack in the roll ofstrip material is shown in FIG. 3, wherein a motor 27 secured to thebody of the device has a pulley 28 secured to the rotary shaft thereof.An endless belt 29 is wrapped around the pulley 28 and another pulley 31rotatable about a clutch shaft 30. A further pulley 32 is rotatablymounted on the clutch shaft 30. The pulleys 31 and 32 are connectedtogether by a clutch 33. A plunger magnet 34 having an actuating member35 is mounted on the body of the device to actuate the clutch 33. Arotary shaft 36 for the cartridge is coupled to a pully 38 by means of ascrew 37. The pulleys 32 and 38 are rotatably connected together by anendless belt 39.

A shaft holder 40 is pivotally mounted on the clutch shaft secured tothe body of the device, and slot or escape means 41 is provided topermit circular displacement of the rotary shaft 36 during the pivotalmovement of the shaft holder 40. As shown in FIG. 1, the rotary shaft 36may be positioned at any desired one of various positions 36, 36,, 36etc. in accordance with the variable size of the cartridge so as toenable any different size of cartridge to be properly placed on therotary shaft 36. Such positioning mechanism for the rotary shaft 36 mayemploy a click or similar mechanism which suitably permits pressurecontact in accordance with a spindle drive or a rim drive. In theillustrated embodiment, the mechanism is shown as the spindle drivetype.

The other components of the present invention will become apparent fromthe following description directed to the operation of the deviceaccording to the invention.

First, removal of the slack present in the roll of strip material willbe described hereunder. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the start slider 12is manually slidden to its right end position as shown by the arrow inFIG. 3 to cause a projection 72 secured at one end of the start slider12 opposing a micro-switch 43 to close and thereby energize the plungermagnet 34, whose actuating member 35 in turn brings the clutch 33 intoengagement. Thus, the rotation of the motor 27 is transmitted to therotary shaft 36 for the cartridge through the belts 29 and 39. As theresult, the cartridge rotating shaft 36 continues to rotate in thedirection opposite to the stripping direction during the while theslider 12 remains in its right end position, whereby the initial slackin the roll of the strip material is removed.

Next, the operation for stripping and feeding the roll of strip materialwith the device of the present invention will be described by referenceto FIGS. 1 to 4. When the start slider 12 is rightwardly slidden fromits initial position along the guide rails RI and R2 against the forceof the spring Fl, the intermediate slider 11 is also caused to sliderightwardly against the force of the spring F2 together with the startslider 12. With the rightward movement of the intermediate slider 11,the stripper 3 carried thereon advances into the opening formed in thecartridge 1 until it is brought into resilient contact with the roll ofthe strip material in the cartridge. In order to restrict the entry ofthe stripper 3 into the cartridge opening, a restraining member 42 isstudded in the body of the device according to the present invention.The restraining member 42 may be a pin fixed to the device body or apart of the housing wall of the device. The upper side edge of thestripper 3, as viewed in FIG. 1 or 2, is formed into a camming surface73 which is adapted to bear against the restraining member 42 and toslide in contact therewith as the stripper 3 advances into thecartridge, whereby the stripper 3 may be angularly rotated to a levelabove the restraining member 42 to ensure the end portion 3, of thestripper to exactly bear against the leading end of the strip roll whichis to be stripped.

The microswitch 43 remains closed during the while the start slider 12together with the intermediate slider 11 is in its right end position,so that the cartridge rotating shaft 36 is rotated in thecounter-clockwise direction so as to remove any slack in the rolledstrip material before it is unwound. At the same time, the stripper 3 isin resilient contact with the leading end of the rolled strip material,as shown by the imaginary outline in FIG. 1. In this position, thestripper 3 also acts as a suppresser for the strip material.

The removal of the slack in the roll is followed by a strippingoperation, which will take place in the manner described hereunder.

When the manual rightward movement of the start slider 12 isdiscontinued, this slider 12 tends to hereturned to its initial positionby the force of the coil spring Fl, but such tendency of the startslider 12 is interrupted because the tapered end portion of theactuating shaft 45 of a plunger magnet 44 secured to the device body isthen received in a small aperture formed in the intermediate slider 11to thereby retain this slider 11 against movement. Thus, the stripper 3is held in pressure contact with the leading end of the rolled strip. Onthe other hand, the aforesaid tendency of the start slider 12 to moveleftwardly to its initial position causes the change-over lever 14having'one end 15 thereof engaged with the pin 13 on that slider torotate counter-clockwise about the shaft 17, whereby the other end 18 ofthe change-over lever 14 causes the connecting lever 20 having its pin21 engaged with said end 18 to rotate in the clockwise direction, andfinally the connecting lever 20 causes the driving lever 10 of thethreading means 4 to rotate counter-clockwise about the driving shaft 8.Thus, the threading means 4 is advanced into the opening in thecartridge 1 until it reaches the position as indicated by the imaginaryoutline in FIG. 1, thereby engaging the leading end of the rolled stripmaterial. With such engagement, the driving lever 10 is maintained inits counter-clockwisely rotated position, and therefore the variouslevers associated with the lever 10 have their extents of angularmovement determined and accordingly the extent of the backward orleftward movement of the start slider 12 is also determined.

The mode of the stripping thus achieved is best shown in FIG. 2. Theleader end portion 46 ofzthe rolled strip material is caught by thepawl-like end portion 3 of the stripper 3 and separated from thesubsequent turn of the strip material. The leading end portion 46 thusseparated is driven by the belt 7 driven from the driving roller 5 so asto move along the strip passage defined between the outer threadingsurface of the belt 7 and the opposed passage surface 3 of the stripper3. As soon as the leader end portion 46 reaches a station where it is tobe taken off by a claw 100, a switch SD for detecting the presence ofthe strip material is actuated to energize the plunger magnet 44, whichthus attracts its actuating member 45 to release the intermediate slider11 from its retained condition. Thus, the intermediate slider 11 ispermitted to return toward its initial position, whereby the retainingplate 16 supporting the pivot shafts l7 and 19 of the changeover lever14 and connecting lever 20 is also permitted to return leftwardly. Asthe result, the stripper 3 is retracted from the cartridge opening whilecontrolled together with the intermediate slide 11 by the restrainingmember 42, and at the same time the connecting lever 20 is disengagedfrom the driving lever 10 of the threading means 4. Thus, the threadingmeans 4 is also retracted from the cartridge opening to its initialposition as shown by the solid outline in FIG. 1.

The operation of the entire device of the presentinvention will now bediscussed by reference to the circuit diagram of FIG. 5. In the shownelectric circuit, SM designates a main switch and numeral 43 indicatesthe aforesaid microswitch for removing the slack in the roll of stripmaterial. As described previously, the microswitch 43 remains closed toenergize the plunger magnet 34 for removing the slack in the rollerstrip as long as the start slider 12 is maintained in its right endposition as viewed in FIG. 1. SD is a detecting switch for detecting thepresence of the strip material and adapted to close when the strippingmechanism begins its stripping action to thread the strip materialproperly from the roll. As soon as the detecting switch SD is closed,the plunger magnet 44 forming the means of re leasing the strippingmechanism is energized to permit the stripper and the threading means toretract from the cartridge opening. Also closed is a switch SL formaintaining the ON state of an indicator means for indicating theoperative condition of a projector lamp L or the like. A switch SR fordetecting any reverse tension which may occur in the strip material suchas film at the end of a cineprojection is connected in the shown mannerto thereby reenergize the plunger magnet 34 so as to cause the detectingswitch SR to self-hold. Thus, after the strip material such as film hasbeen completely rewound and the detecting switch SD is opened, theelectric circuit continues to operate an unshown ventilator meansrotatable by the motor 27 through the main switch SM connected with apower source E, thereby preventing the projector machine from beingheated by the lamp L. The lamp L is already turned off when thedetecting switch SR is closed by the plunger magnet 34 and the lampswitch SL opened by the other plunger magnet 44.

Thus, according to the present invention, the onetouch action of thestart slider ensures the removal of any slack present in the rolledstrip material within the cartridge as well as the ready and simplestripping and feeding of the leader end portion of the strip material.Further, cartridges of various sizes can be used and in such cases, thesliding contact between the camming surface formed in the stripper andthe restraining member provided on the device body acts to smoothlycontrol the entry of the stripper into the cartridge, thereby readilyenabling replacement of cartridges.

We claim:

1. A device for stripping a leader end portion off a roll of stripmaterial having such leader end portion and for feeding the stripmaterial, said device comprising:

stripping means having an end portion adapted for,

resilient contact with said rolled strip material to strip the leaderend portion off said roll of strip material, and a strip passage surfaceadapted to direct the stripped leader end portion from said rolled stripmaterial in a threading manner;

threading meansadapted to make a pressure contact with said roll ofstrip material to rotate the same so that said leader end portion ofsaid rolled strip material is directed toward said stripping means, saidthreading means having a strip threading surface disposed in opposed andcooperable relationship with said strip passage surface of saidstripping means so that the stripped leader end portion is threaded awayfrom said roll of strip material when the roll is rotated by saidthreading means;

driving means including a start slider movable with respect to the bodyof the device and adapted to urge said threading means into contact withsaid roll of strip material, and an intermediate slider movable withrespect to the body of the device and carrying said stripping meanspivotally thereon; and

restraining means for said stripping means, said restraining means beingadapted to control theextent of angular movement of said stripping meanspivotally carried on said intermediate slider.

2. A device as defined in claim 1, wherein said threading meansincludesz'means includes:

a driving roller;

two driven rollers spaced apart from said driving roller; said drivingroller and said driven rollers being so disposed as not to be juxtaposedon a straight line;

an endless belt extending over said three rollers, said belt beingdriven from said driving roller and having a stretched portion definingsaid strip threading surface; and

a base plate carrying said three rollers for rotation thereon andpivotally mounted on the shaft of said driving roller.

3. A device as defined in claim 2, wherein said threading means furtherincludes a driving lever secured to said driving roller shaft to causesaid threading means to pivotally move into pressure contact with saidroll of strip material.

4. A device as defined in claim 2, wherein one of said driven rollers isadapted to urge said endless belt into contact with said roll of stripmaterial so as to drive the latter, said one driven roller having adiameter smaller than the initial diameter of said roll.

5. A device as defined in claim 1, wherein said stripping means furtherincludes a camming surface formed on the opposite side to said strippassage and adapted to make a sliding contact with said restrainingmeans.

6. A device as defined in claim 1, wherein said driving means furtherincludes a mechanism for causing said start slider to slide and therebycausing said intermediate slider to slide with said start slider, and a.mechanism for retaining said intermediate slider against movement uponrelease of said start slider from its sliding motion, whereby saidthreading means may be urged into contact with said roll of stripmaterial and said stripping means brought into resilient contact withsaid roll.

7. A motion picture projector for projecting a rotatable roll of filmhaving a leader end portion, comprismeans for rotatably supporting theroll of film;

stripping means including an end portion adapted to bear against therolled film so as to strip said leader end portion of said film off theroll, and a film passage surface adapted to direct said stripped leaderend portion from said roll in a threading manner;

threading means adapted to make a pressure contact with said roll offilm to rotate the same so that said leader end portion of the rolledfilm is directed toward said stripping means, said threading meansincluding a film threading surface provided in opposed and cooperablerelationship with said film passage surface of said stripping means soas to thread said stripped film leader end portion from said roll whensaid roll of film is rotated by said threading means;

driving means slidable with respect to the body of said motion pictureprojector, said driving means including a start slider adapted to urgesaid threading means into contact with said roll of film, and anintermediate slider for carrying said stripping means pivotally thereon;and

restraining means for said stripping means fixed to the body of saidmotion picture projector, said restraining means being adapted to bearagainst said stripping means so as to control the extent of angularmovement of said stripping means.

8. In a motion picture projector for projecting a rotatable roll of filmhaving a leader end portion, the improvement comprising:

a stripper member adapted to resiliently contact the roll of film in afilm unwinding direction during the rotation of said film roll and tostrip the film leader end portion off said roll, said stripper memberdefining a film passage surface for threading the stripped film leaderend portion from said roll;

a movable endless belt member adapted to make a pressure contact withsaid roll of film in the film unwinding direction in the vicinity ofsaid stripper member and to drive said roll of film for rotation, saidbelt member defining a film threading surface opposed to and spacedapart from said film passage surface of said stripper member so as toprovide a film passage for directing therethrough said film leader endportion from said roll;

a driving member slidable with respect to the body of said motionpicture projector, said driving member including a start slider forurging said movable belt into contact with said film roll, and anintermediate slider for carrying said stripper member pivotally thereon;

a restraining member for said stripper member fixed to the body of saidmotion picture projector, said restraining member being adapted to bearagainst said stripper member so as to control the extent of angularmovement of the latter.

9. In a combination of a cartridge of varying size containing therein arotatable roll of film having a leader end portion and having an openingfor permitting access to said roll of film from outside the cartridge,and a motion picture projector capable of unwinding and projecting therolled film in said cartridge irrespective of the size of the cartridge,said projector comprising:

rotatable means for carrying said cartridge thereon and rotatablymounting thereon the roll of film in said cartridge;

stripping means including an end portion adapted to advance into saidcartridge through said cartridge opening to bear against the rolled filmand thereby strip the leader end portion off said film roll, said endportion of said stripping means being also adapted to react from saidcartridge opening upon completion of the stripping action, a filmpassage surface for directing the stripped film leader end portion fromsaid roll in a threading manner, and a camming surface provided on theother side than said film passage surface;

threading means pivotally movable with respect to the body of saidmotion picture projector, said threading means including a filmthreading portion adapted to advance into said cartridge through saidcartridge opening to make a pressure contact with the rolled film whilepermitting the rotation of the latter and thereby thread the film leaderend portion, said film threading portion being also adapted to retractfrom said cartridge opening upon completion of the threading action, anda film threading surface provided in opposed and cooperable relationshipwith said film passage surface of said stripping means;

driving means supported by the body of said motion picture projector andslidable toward the loaded position of said cartridge, said drivingmeans including a start slider for retractably advancing said threadingmeans through said cartridge opening into pressure contact with saidfilm roll, and an intermediate slider for carrying said stripping meanspivotally thereon and for retractably advancing said end portion of saidstripping means into said cartridge through said cartridge opening; and

restraining means for said stripping means, said restraining means beingadapted to engage said camming surface of said stripping means tothereby control the advancement of said stripping means into saidcartridge.

10. A device for stripping a leader end portion off a roll of stripmaterial having such leader end portion and for feeding the stripmaterial, said device comprising:

stripping means having an end portion adapted for resilient contact withsaid rolled strip material to strip the leader end portion off said rollof strip material, and a strip passage surface adapted to direct thestripped leader end portion from said rolled strip material in athreading manner;

threading means including a strip threading surface adapted to make apressure contact with said roll of strip material and rotate the same soas to direct the leader end portion of said rolled strip toward saidstripping means, said strip threading surface being provided inopposedand cooperable relationship with said strip passage surface of saidstripping means for threading the stripped leader end portion from saidroll;

driving means including a start slider movable with respect to the bodyof said device and adapted to urge said threading means into contactwith said roll of strip material, and an intermediate slider movablewith respect to the body of said device and carrying said strippingmeans pivotally thereon; and

means operatively associated with said driving means for removing anyslack in the roll of strip material, said last-named means being drivenby the sliding movement of said start slider of said driving means toreversely rotate a rotatable shaft for supporting said roll of stripmaterial and stopped upon release of said start slider from its slidingmovement.

11. A device for stripping a leader end portion off a roll of stripmaterial having such leader end portion and for feeding the stripmaterial, said device comprising:

pivotally movable stripping means having an end portion adapted forresilient contact with said rolled strip material to strip the leaderend portion off said roll of strip material, and a camming surfaceformed on that side of said stripping means opposed to said roll ofstrip material so as to control the extent of angular movement of saidstripping means; driving means including a start slider movable withrespect to the body of the device and an intermediate slider movablewith respect to the body of the device and carrying said stripping meanspivotally thereon; restraining means for said stripping means, saidrestraining means being adapted to control the extent of angularmovement of said stripping means pivotally carried on said intermediateslider; and

means operatively associated with said driving means for removing anyslack in the roll of strip material, said last-named means being drivenby the sliding movement of said start slider of said driving means toreversely reotate a rotatable shaft for supporting said roll of stripmaterial and stopped upon release of said start slider from its slidingmovement.

12. In a motion picture projector provided with means for supporting acartridge containing therein a roll of film having a leader end portion,means defining a film passage, and a film take-off claw disposed in saidfilm passage to feed the film, the improvement comprising:

pivotally movable threading means adapted to move between a firstposition for making a pressure contact with the roll of film in a filmunwinding direction so as to thread the film from said roll and rotatesaid roll and a second position for inhibiting the pressure contact withand rotation of said film roll;

pivotally movable film stripping means adapted to assume a firstposition for stripping the film leader end portion off said film rollwhen said film roll is rotated by said threading means and a secondposition for inhibiting the stripping action with respect to said filmroll;

said stripping means and said threading means being cooperable with eachother in their respective first positions to provide a film passage forguiding theretlirough said film leader end portion;

means for moving said threading means and stripping means from theirrespective second positions to their respective first positionsincluding a first sliding means for moving said threading means and asecond slidingmeans operatively engaged with said first sliding meansfor moving said stripping means thereby enabling said film leader endportion to be stripped off said film roll and guided along said filmpassage to the take-off claw; and operating means for detecting andresponding to the arrival of said film leader end portion at saidtakeoff claw and being effective to move said threading means andstripping means from their respective first positions to theirrespective second positions.

i i i t

1. A device for stripping a leader end portion off a roll of stripmaterial having such leader end portion and for feeding the stripmaterial, said device comprising: stripping means having an end portionadapted for resilient contact with said rolled strip material to stripthe leader end portion off said roll of strip material, and a strippassage surface adapted to direct the stripped leader end portion fromsaid rolled strip material in a threading manner; threading meansadapted to make a pressure contact with said roll of strip material torotate the same so that said leader end portion of said rolled stripmaterial is directed toward said stripping means, said threading meanshaving a strip threading surface disposed in opposed and cooperablerelationship with said strip passage surface of said stripping means sothat the stripped leader end portion is threaded away from said roll ofstrip material when the roll is rotated by said threading means; drivingmeans including a start slider movable with respect to the body of thedevice and adapted to urge said threading means into contact with saidroll of strip material, and an intermediate slider movable with respectto the body of the device and carrying said stripping means pivotallythereon; and restraining means for said stripping means, saidrestraining means being adapted to control the extent of angularmovement of said stripping means pivotally carried on said intermediateslider.
 2. A device as defined in claim 1, wherein said threading meansincludes: means includes: a driving roller; two driven rollers spacedapart from said driving roller; said driving roller and said drivenrollers being so disposed as not to be juxtaposed on a straight line; anendless belt extending over said three rollers, said belt being drivenfrom said driving roller and having a stretched portion defining saidstrip threading surface; and a base plate carrying said three rollersfor rotation thereon and pivotally mounted on the shaft of said drivingroller.
 3. A device as defined in claim 2, wherein said threading meansfurther includes a driving lever secured to said driving roller shaft tocause said threading means to pivotally move into pressure contact withsaid roll of strip material.
 4. A device as defined in claim 2, whereinone of said driven rollers is adapted to urge said endless belt intocontact with said roll of strip material so as to drive the latter, saidone driven roller having a diameter smaller than the initial diameter ofsaid roll.
 5. A device as defined in claim 1, wherein said strippingmeans further includes a camming surface formed on the opposite side tosaid strip passage and adapted to make a sliding contact with saidrestraining means.
 6. A device as defined in claim 1, wherein saiddriving means further includes a mechanism for causing said start sliderto slide and thereby causing said intermediate slider to slide with saidstart slider, and a mechanism for retaining said intermediate slideragainst movement upon release of said start slider from its slidingmotion, whereby said threading means may be urged into contact with saidroll of strip material and said stripping means brought into resilientcontact with said roll.
 7. A motion picture projector for projecting arotatable roll of film having a leader end portion, comprising: meansfor rotatably supporting the roll of film; stripping means including anend portion adapted to bear against the rolled film so as to strip saidleader end portion of said film off the roll, and a film passage surfaceadapted to direct said stripped leader end portion from said roll in athreading manner; threading means adapted to make a pressure contactwith said roll of film to rotate tHe same so that said leader endportion of the rolled film is directed toward said stripping means, saidthreading means including a film threading surface provided in opposedand cooperable relationship with said film passage surface of saidstripping means so as to thread said stripped film leader end portionfrom said roll when said roll of film is rotated by said threadingmeans; driving means slidable with respect to the body of said motionpicture projector, said driving means including a start slider adaptedto urge said threading means into contact with said roll of film, and anintermediate slider for carrying said stripping means pivotally thereon;and restraining means for said stripping means fixed to the body of saidmotion picture projector, said restraining means being adapted to bearagainst said stripping means so as to control the extent of angularmovement of said stripping means.
 8. In a motion picture projector forprojecting a rotatable roll of film having a leader end portion, theimprovement comprising: a stripper member adapted to resiliently contactthe roll of film in a film unwinding direction during the rotation ofsaid film roll and to strip the film leader end portion off said roll,said stripper member defining a film passage surface for threading thestripped film leader end portion from said roll; a movable endless beltmember adapted to make a pressure contact with said roll of film in thefilm unwinding direction in the vicinity of said stripper member and todrive said roll of film for rotation, said belt member defining a filmthreading surface opposed to and spaced apart from said film passagesurface of said stripper member so as to provide a film passage fordirecting therethrough said film leader end portion from said roll; adriving member slidable with respect to the body of said motion pictureprojector, said driving member including a start slider for urging saidmovable belt into contact with said film roll, and an intermediateslider for carrying said stripper member pivotally thereon; arestraining member for said stripper member fixed to the body of saidmotion picture projector, said restraining member being adapted to bearagainst said stripper member so as to control the extent of angularmovement of the latter.
 9. In a combination of a cartridge of varyingsize containing therein a rotatable roll of film having a leader endportion and having an opening for permitting access to said roll of filmfrom outside the cartridge, and a motion picture projector capable ofunwinding and projecting the rolled film in said cartridge irrespectiveof the size of the cartridge, said projector comprising: rotatable meansfor carrying said cartridge thereon and rotatably mounting thereon theroll of film in said cartridge; stripping means including an end portionadapted to advance into said cartridge through said cartridge opening tobear against the rolled film and thereby strip the leader end portionoff said film roll, said end portion of said stripping means being alsoadapted to react from said cartridge opening upon completion of thestripping action, a film passage surface for directing the stripped filmleader end portion from said roll in a threading manner, and a cammingsurface provided on the other side than said film passage surface;threading means pivotally movable with respect to the body of saidmotion picture projector, said threading means including a filmthreading portion adapted to advance into said cartridge through saidcartridge opening to make a pressure contact with the rolled film whilepermitting the rotation of the latter and thereby thread the film leaderend portion, said film threading portion being also adapted to retractfrom said cartridge opening upon completion of the threading action, anda film threading surface provided in opposed and cooperable relationshipwith said film passage surface of said stripping means; driving meanssupported by tHe body of said motion picture projector and slidabletoward the loaded position of said cartridge, said driving meansincluding a start slider for retractably advancing said threading meansthrough said cartridge opening into pressure contact with said filmroll, and an intermediate slider for carrying said stripping meanspivotally thereon and for retractably advancing said end portion of saidstripping means into said cartridge through said cartridge opening; andrestraining means for said stripping means, said restraining means beingadapted to engage said camming surface of said stripping means tothereby control the advancement of said stripping means into saidcartridge.
 10. A device for stripping a leader end portion off a roll ofstrip material having such leader end portion and for feeding the stripmaterial, said device comprising: stripping means having an end portionadapted for resilient contact with said rolled strip material to stripthe leader end portion off said roll of strip material, and a strippassage surface adapted to direct the stripped leader end portion fromsaid rolled strip material in a threading manner; threading meansincluding a strip threading surface adapted to make a pressure contactwith said roll of strip material and rotate the same so as to direct theleader end portion of said rolled strip toward said stripping means,said strip threading surface being provided in opposed and cooperablerelationship with said strip passage surface of said stripping means forthreading the stripped leader end portion from said roll; driving meansincluding a start slider movable with respect to the body of said deviceand adapted to urge said threading means into contact with said roll ofstrip material, and an intermediate slider movable with respect to thebody of said device and carrying said stripping means pivotally thereon;and means operatively associated with said driving means for removingany slack in the roll of strip material, said last-named means beingdriven by the sliding movement of said start slider of said drivingmeans to reversely rotate a rotatable shaft for supporting said roll ofstrip material and stopped upon release of said start slider from itssliding movement.
 11. A device for stripping a leader end portion off aroll of strip material having such leader end portion and for feedingthe strip material, said device comprising: pivotally movable strippingmeans having an end portion adapted for resilient contact with saidrolled strip material to strip the leader end portion off said roll ofstrip material, and a camming surface formed on that side of saidstripping means opposed to said roll of strip material so as to controlthe extent of angular movement of said stripping means; driving meansincluding a start slider movable with respect to the body of the deviceand an intermediate slider movable with respect to the body of thedevice and carrying said stripping means pivotally thereon; restrainingmeans for said stripping means, said restraining means being adapted tocontrol the extent of angular movement of said stripping means pivotallycarried on said intermediate slider; and means operatively associatedwith said driving means for removing any slack in the roll of stripmaterial, said last-named means being driven by the sliding movement ofsaid start slider of said driving means to reversely reotate a rotatableshaft for supporting said roll of strip material and stopped uponrelease of said start slider from its sliding movement.
 12. In a motionpicture projector provided with means for supporting a cartridgecontaining therein a roll of film having a leader end portion, meansdefining a film passage, and a film take-off claw disposed in said filmpassage to feed the film, the improvement comprising: pivotally movablethreading means adapted to move between a first position for making apressure contact with the roll of film in a film unwinding direction Soas to thread the film from said roll and rotate said roll and a secondposition for inhibiting the pressure contact with and rotation of saidfilm roll; pivotally movable film stripping means adapted to assume afirst position for stripping the film leader end portion off said filmroll when said film roll is rotated by said threading means and a secondposition for inhibiting the stripping action with respect to said filmroll; said stripping means and said threading means being cooperablewith each other in their respective first positions to provide a filmpassage for guiding therethrough said film leader end portion; means formoving said threading means and stripping means from their respectivesecond positions to their respective first positions including a firstsliding means for moving said threading means and a second sliding meansoperatively engaged with said first sliding means for moving saidstripping means thereby enabling said film leader end portion to bestripped off said film roll and guided along said film passage to thetake-off claw; and operating means for detecting and responding to thearrival of said film leader end portion at said take-off claw and beingeffective to move said threading means and stripping means from theirrespective first positions to their respective second positions.